Craftwork talks to Marie Kare of the Sampler
We saw our first Sampler two years ago while interning at the ReadyMade offices in Oakland. We looked on eagerly as a big thick envelope arrived stuffed with handmade goodies that included buttons, magnets, cards and other crafty items. You know the feeling of getting a nice handwritten letter from an old friend? Add that with Christmas and that's sort of what receiving the Sampler is like, except you also learn about new artists, crafters and DIY organizations in the process. An excellent resource for crafters who want to learn about other crafters, people who appreciate the arts but don't make them, and independent DIYer's trying to spread the word about what they're up to.
Marie Kare is the woman behind the Sampler. A crafter herself, she's innovative and energetic, which, we imagine she has to be, she puts together hundreds of Sampler packages each month. Craftwork was lucky enough to steal some of Marie’s time recently, so read on and find out about the story behind the Sampler.
Can you explain the Sampler?
The Sampler is a project I've created to help promote independent artists, crafters, designers, musicians, zinesters -- basically anyone with a small indie business. People send in samples of their work and I photograph and feature the samples on the Sampler's website and mailing list, then send the samples out to consumers and media all over the world.
What motivated you to start the Sampler?
Before the Sampler, I was a crafter with a tiny store on Telegraph in Berkeley. I tried having a little online shop, too, but I found that people were a lot more likely to actually buy things if they could touch and play with them. I think being able to experience something in person is particularly important with handmade items -- you want to be sure of the quality and craftsmanship before you buy. It's hard to tell a lot about an item just from a picture or brief description, but when you're holding it in your hand, you've pretty much got the whole story right there.
Besides being your fabulous creation, what do you think are some of the best things about the Sampler?
I really love the sense of community that's developed around the Sampler! There are people who have been subscribing and contributing since the very beginning (nearly three years) and are still participating every single month. Lots of friendships have formed through the Sampler. People will recognize Sampler contributors at fairs, write to each other because they enjoy their work, get to know each other through the livejournal community and the website. If it weren't for the Sampler, I, personally, wouldn't know half of my most favorite people.
Lots of business-y collaborations have sprung from the Sampler, too. For instance, the amazing CROQ zine began in the Sampler's livejournal community. I love that zine.
A sample of the Sampler courtsey of West Coast Crafty
What do you think of the crafting community in the Bay Area?
Maybe I'm a little biased because I haven't lived outside of NorCal for nearly a decade, but it seems like the Bay Area is awesome for crafters. There are a lot of great groups like the SF Craft Mafia and The RPS Collective in the East Bay. There are also tons of Stitch and Bitch groups if you check Yahoo! Groups and Craigslist.
One organization out of that Bay Area that is super exciting is Craft Magazine out of Sebastopol. I've had the pleasure of working with them recently and they're up to so much good stuff -- spreading the word about crafting through the magazine, sponsoring several local craft fairs and shows and hosting their own craft fair with Bazaar Bizarre inside Maker Faire in San Mateo. This year there's going to be a "craft annex" exhibition space -- a special area for smaller companies that cater to the crafting community -- so I can imagine that will provide a huge boost for local crafters.
Is it really only you right now? How do you manage it all on your own?
Ha! You know, it was just me until recently. I've gotten some volunteer help! Totally Awesome Alison of WonderlandQ has gone from longtime Sampler contributor to head of "Contributor Relations", Jenn from Rosebud Designs puts together the Sampler's promo packs and an old college friend of mine has volunteered to help the Sampler with the business stuff. Like I was saying above, the community feeling of the Sampler is very strong, and all of these people are volunteering to help out basically because they're nice and like the Sampler. I couldn't be more grateful for them.
When it comes to putting the packages together each month, though, it is still just me. Hopefully, I'll be getting some help with that soon, too. I've managed it so far by drinking a lot of tea and I having an awesome dog and an extremely patient fiancé. They're nice to me and I like that.
What are some of your favorite local places to shop?
I do a lot of my crafty shopping online, but I love ArtFibers in SF, Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics in Berkeley and Rumpletstiltskin in Sacramento.
Do you have a craft you prefer?
It really depends on the mood I'm in. If I'm feeling a little, um, *frustrated* I enjoy some needle felting (stabbing things with needles). If I'm in a more relaxed mood, I like spinning yarn and knitting. I like to paint, too, but I'm kinda terrible at it. Back in the day, I worked a lot with PMC and I still wish I could do it, but it's a little time-consuming.
How else are you a part of this community?
Through the Sampler I like to make "Craft Fair Survival Kits" for craft fair vendors. They have stuff like little sewing kits, handi-wipes and craft fair necessities. Handing them out makes a nice excuse for meeting crafters!
Lately I've been doing some writing for a couple of crafty zines like CROQ and Adorn and I've been helping out a little with promotions for CRAFT magazine. The "Where's Craftie?" project I'm working on for CRAFT right now keeps me in touch with crafters all over the world! Here's the CRAFT blog on when he was in Delft recently, and you can see a bunch of pictures of him on CRAFT's flickr or friend him on myspace.
And, of course, I try to buy handmade whenever possible. Too bad there's no handmade Wii.